Assessing the Need

• While there has been nominal growth in the population of Bonner County since the early-2000s, the Bonner Community Food Bank has seen an increase of more than 310 percent in food bank use in that time.

• During that same period, requests for low-income energy assistance have increased by more than 90 percent.

• Bonner County has one of the worst childhood hunger problems in Idaho with a 23.6 percent “food insecurity rate” among children.

• Studies focusing on food deprived children show they are more likely to become sick, have a decreased attention span and lack the enthusiasm to learn because they are concentrating on their hunger more than learning.

(Statistics supplied by the Bonner Community Food Bank)